


A Do Over—The Understanding Sophie Job

by crayonbreakygal



Category: Leverage
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-18
Updated: 2016-04-18
Packaged: 2018-06-03 00:17:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6589090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crayonbreakygal/pseuds/crayonbreakygal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Someone had done a number on Sophie early in her life to make her believe that she wasn’t lovable, worthy of love.   Takes place during The King George Job, season three</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Do Over—The Understanding Sophie Job

Takes place during The King George Job, season three

A Do Over—The Understanding Sophie Job

“I understand.”

“Understand?”

“Why you say the things you say, do the things you do?  Is this a do over?”

Nate sat across the room from her, playing with the silk that was around his neck.  It wasn’t his style, but Sophie had told him it would look the part.  It was something to distract him, so he didn’t have to look in her eyes.  He didn’t want to know if she would lie to him, because if she did, it would crush him.

“A do over from what?”

He’d started the conversation in the middle, hoping that she’d either play along or get exactly what he was saying.  Sophie was too good to fall for that.  Nate would have to explain everything to her, probably getting some fact wrong so she could refute everything he said to her.

“Charlotte Prentice, 18th duchess of Hanover.”

“As I said before, a long con.”

“Seven years?  I asked if you were too invested in this.  I believe you are and not just because of that little girl.”

Sophie’s eyes darted here and there for a moment until she could decide what to tell him.  Nate could read her like a book, as always.

Working her way over to a chair beside him, she slowly sat down, sighing as she did.  The drink Nate had been sipping immediately went down Sophie’s throat like she had to fortify herself for the onslaught that was coming.

“I created this character for a long con.  I got in too deep.”

“I’ll say.”

Sophie glared back at him.

“I was young.  I could run other cons while building this.  Hell, I stole the Degas while still building this persona.”

“Ah, the Degas.”

Nate had taken to naming her cons in his head after what she wore that she had run under his nose.  This one was the red dress con.  Memorable, very memorable.

“I was so close to making this one work.”

“How?  By driving a man to drink?”

If looks could kill, he thought.  She shot daggers his way. Sophie got up off the chair, Nate stood also, hoping to stop her before she did something stupid, like blow this con.

Putting a hand on her arm, he swung her around to face him.  The purse she still had in her hands made contact with his head, making him grab for it before she could do more damage.

“You’re an utter bastard sometimes,” she growled back as she held onto the purse, attempting to pull it from his grasp.

“What did you do to him?  Break his heart?”

Nate had said it in jest, but realized by the look on her face that it was probably true.

“Left him at the altar.”

Now that was a deep, long con.  How could she have done something like that?

“You used the heart con on someone?  Sophie, why on earth?”

“Because it was the only one that would work.”

“And the jet fuel was ignited.”

Nate sighed, closing his eyes, dropping her arm.

“He found out what I was up to.  And still wanted to marry me.  What bastard would do that?  I had conned him out of millions and was going to take him for more that very day.”

There was more to this story than she was letting on.  He could see behind her eyes that maybe Sophie hadn’t meant to get in too deep.  That she possibly had feelings for the man too.  He understood why a man would be driven to drink.  He’d done the exact same thing.  Uh oh.

“Is this why you stick around, with me?  Are you trying to fix what you did wrong with this other guy, like atoning for screwing him up?”

“You bastard, the whole world does not revolve around you.”

He followed her to the door, but before she could open it, he placed his hand over hers, stopping her forward progress.

“I never meant to hurt him.  He was the exact opposite of you, you see.  But in some ways, so much like you.  He was smart and funny and warm.  But ignorant of the world.  He wasn’t jaded or an utter bastard.  He left that to his brother.”

So she thought him jaded and an utter bastard.  Not far from the truth. 

“The brother figured out what I was and told him.  William did not care one whit.  He wanted to get married.  He said he’d deal with the repercussions later.  Only his brother blackmailed me into leaving.”

Now Nate understood.  She didn’t exactly leave under her own power.

“He’d ruin William utterly.  I couldn’t have that happen.  In the end, William wasn’t strong enough to stand what had happened.”

Sophie turned to look him in the eye.  It was the first since they had started talking.  He could tell that she was sorry for her role in what had happened.

“You leaving him drove him to drink?”

“Oh bloody hell, no.  He didn’t want to be ruined.  You have to understand that he thought he could actually fix it, not be pinned to the ground by his brother.  So was the money more important or was I?  I still to this day don’t know.  He was so ignorant and juvenile.  He thought he could have both.”

Did Sophie really believe the story she was telling him?  Sam’s death had driven him to drink, almost killing him in the process.  It was only the team and Sophie that dragged him out, kicking and screaming.  If this William didn’t have that kind of support system, he could see why the man would just crumble.

“Or maybe he was really in love?”

“He couldn’t have been.”

Sophie looked away as she said that. 

“How do you know?” he said softly, not wanting to spook her.

“Me?  How could someone love me?”

What?  She believed she wasn’t lovable?  Did she realize what she was saying to him?

Nate tipped her chin up and looked straight into her eyes.

“How can you believe that?  Look at us, this team.  We all love you Sophie.”

“It’s not the same.”

“It’s the same.  We would do anything for you,” he told her, desperate for her to believe that they all cared for her, especially him.

As he cupped her warm cheek, a single tear fell onto his hand.

“I would do anything for you.”

“Don’t say something that you don’t believe, Nate.”

“I am here today, with you, because of you.  Can you believe in that?”

Someone had done a number on Sophie early in her life to make her believe that she wasn’t lovable, worthy of love.  Was that why she did what she did?  Did the adoration make up for the love she never felt before?

“You came back.”

Sophie’s breath that she held burst out, making her breathe unsteadily, like she’d run a marathon.

“Because you said you needed me.”

“Always.”

Nate pulled her to him, enveloping her into a hug.  He’d have to change his shirt after the tears stopped.  He didn’t care.  She needed to do this, figure out that her past did not make her unlovable, unwanted, not needed.

He had just figured out in that moment that the two of them were not alone.  Parker appeared out of nowhere, enveloping the two of them with a hug of her own.

“Sophie, don’t leave.  We all love you.”

“Sorry.  We didn’t mean to eavesdrop.”

Hardison was standing a few feet away, holding supplies for his bookmaking.  Eliot hovered back behind the hacker, head down.

“No, uh, no, it’s OK,” Nate answered.

“Parker, too tight,” Sophie said as she attempted to pry Parker off her.

“Soph, just know, that we’re here,” Eliot managed to get out.

“We gotcha back, Sophie,” Hardison added, wiping his eyes.

“OK, book to be made, auction to steal.  Let’s get to work, people,” Nate ended the conversation, hoping to give Sophie an out if she needed it.

Each man hugged her tightly, then went off to their corners to prepare for the con against Keller.

Nate stood there for a moment longer, then whispered in her ear, hoping that the others didn’t hear him.

“We love you Sophie.  I love you.  Remember that.”

Sophie’s eyes widened at that.

“Why?”

“Stick around and find out.”

Nate chuckled, then went off to find a clean shirt without mascara and tears staining it. He’d given her something to think about.  Let her stew that around and get back to him.

 


End file.
